The Unreal Tournament franchise has long been connected with fast paced, imaginative, action packed game play, and the third installment is certainly no exception to the rule. Few things can be more satisfying, and fun, then using the Redeemers secondary fire to chase down your nemesis with a nuclear rocket and watching him get blown to oblivion.

Arguably, one of the more popular maps on Unreal Tournament 3 servers is the CTF (capture the flag) map, Suspense. The map itself is essentially a large suspension bridge, with small bases at each end. People can go on, over, or below the bridge to reach the opposing team’s flag, and then run like a bat out of hell to get back to their base.

In vehicle capture the flag many players seem to find themselves drawn to the Goliath tank. And why is this? Well, it’s a huge tank, with a huge gun. What more can you ask for? However, on Suspense most people will simply try to power the Goliath down the bridge and get destroyed by an incoming AVRiL (anti-vehicle rocket launcher). If you find yourself drawn to the Goliath your best bet might be to sit back at the end of the bridge and try to blast any enemies who step on it to dust. You’ll still have to roll back and forth to avoid AVRiL rockets, but at least you won’t be storming head on into them.

The tops of the bridge make great spots for the skilled sniper, and also give you access to two different UDamage power ups. The only real way up to the top is to walk up the narrow cables, or fly a raptor up there. One of the reasons why this spot is so powerful is because if someone wants to come up and take you down, they’ll have to traverse the narrow cables to reach

you. This will leave them helpless to dodge your sniper fire.

And everyone’s favorite personal nuclear weapon makes an appearance in Suspense, the Redeemer. It spawns under the bridge and upon spawning the manhole covers on the bridge will open to allow easy access to the weapon. The rocket launcher is also an extremely powerful weapon on Suspense, especially due to the popularity of vehicles. Using multiple rockets and the lock-on feature is a basic, but devastating strategy.

As with many CTF maps speed can be your greatest ally. Make good use of the hoverboard and remember that crouching on it while grappling a vehicle will help to steady you as you avoid incoming fire. Grabbing the armor before making a flag run can also greatly increase your survivability on the field.

And lastly, good luck out there. Especially if you venture onto a UT3 server playing Suspense and with me on it. Oh and remember, doing tricks on your hoverboard won’t make you a pro, but at least you can die with style.